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Speaker 1: Hey, how's it going. How's your weekend? It sure is

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hot outside. Oh did you see the game last night?

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This is how we get the conversation going in American English.

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Let's dive in.

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Speaker 2: Welcome to another Happy English podcast, coming to you from

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New York City. And here's your English teacher, Michael.

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Speaker 1: All right, thank you John, and thanks everyone. It's Michael

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here from Happy English and I help people speak English better.

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And this is Happy English Podcast eight sixty one, How

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to make small Talk in English. Hello, and welcome, Thanks

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for tuning in today. I want to talk about something

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that might seem small, but it actually plays a big

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role in everyday English, and that's small talk. Small talk

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is one of those things that isn't really taught in textbooks,

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but it's something people do all the time in English

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speaking countries. And if you've ever found yourself in an

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awkward elevator ride or sitting next to someone on a

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train and didn't know what to say, this episode is

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for you. Let's get to it. What is small talk anyway?

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Small talk is basically casual conversation, nothing too deep, nothing

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too serious. It's the kind of thing people say to

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be polite, friendly, or just to connect with another person.

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In American culture, small talk happens everywhere, at work, at

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the coffee shop with your neighbor, even in line at

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the grocery store. And I think one of the reasons

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that we engage in small talk is because Americans aren't

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comfortable in silence when there are other people near them.

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That's why in the US, even a total stranger might

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strike up a conversation with you by saying something like, Hey,

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how's it going or beautiful day, isn't it now? When

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you hear how's it going or how are you? Do

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they really want your full life story? Probably not, but

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they're just being friendly. And that's what small talk is.

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A way to break the ice and start a light,

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easy conversation. By the way, break the ice means to

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start a conversation in a new or awkward situation, like

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when you meet someone for the first time and say

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something light to get things going. Like I told a

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joke to break the ice with my new coworkers. It

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doesn't have to be deep, it just has to be friendly.

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So what can you say to make small talk? Well?

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Keep in mind that an English conversation generally starts with

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a question. We call these questions openers because they open

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the conversation. And here are a few basic openers you

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can use to break the ice and make small talk. So,

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how is your weekend? Crazy weather? We've been having? Huh? Hey?

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Did you see the game last night? These are simple,

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natural ways to start a converse, especially at work, at school,

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or even with someone you've just met at a party.

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There are, of course, a simple set of openers in English.

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I call them the hows and watts. Let's tackle the

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hows first. These are questions like how are you, how's

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it going? And how's everything? Think of these as having

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a similar meaning to hello. If someone says, hey, how

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are you, it's not such a deep question like this

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is weird?

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Speaker 3: Hey how are you? Oh? You know, my stomach doesn't

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feel so good and I think I'm coming down with

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a fever.

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Speaker 1: That's not how this works. The most common response to hey,

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how are you is something like I'm good? How are you?

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Or hey, how are you?

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Speaker 2: Oh?

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Speaker 1: Not bad? How's it going? Notice that the reply is

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short and sweet, and then we follow that with a

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question I'm good, how are you? Not too bad? How's

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it going? Questions start the conversation in English, and they

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move the conversation along. Without this kind of question, the

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conversation would end quickly. Hey how are you? I'm good?

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See the difference. The next type of openers are the

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what's like, what's new, what's up? And what's happening? Listen

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carefully to what I have to say next. What's new

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doesn't mean what's new. Yeah you heard that right, But

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let me say it one more time. What's new doesn't

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mean what's new. What's new means let's chat. Let's have

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a conversation. And since I asked what's new, you can

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pick the topic, and the three most common topics you

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can use to reply to what's new are the weather, sports,

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and food. It goes something like this, Hey, how are you?

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Speaker 3: Not too bad? How about you?

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Speaker 2: I'm okay?

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Speaker 1: So what's new?

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Speaker 3: Crazy weather? We've been having? Huh? I know the humidity

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is brutal? Or like this, Hey, how's it going? I'm good? Thanks?

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How about you?

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Speaker 1: Me too? So what's happening?

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Speaker 3: Did you see the Dodger game last night? What a game?

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Speaker 1: Totally?

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Speaker 2: Oh?

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Speaker 1: Tawani hit another home run? Or like this one?

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Speaker 3: Hey, how's everything not too bad? Thanks? How about you?

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Speaker 2: Two?

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Speaker 1: So what's up?

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Speaker 3: Not too much. I just had lunch. What did you eat?

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I had a burger at the diner not so healthy,

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but it was good.

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Speaker 1: I hear you was that the diner on thirty seventh

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in Broadway? So in each case, the conversation started with

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a how question, then a what question, and then moved

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on with some how about yous and other follow up questions.

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That's the basics of a small talk conversation in English.

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And here's one more important thing to remember. In American English,

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it's polite to ask a question back, don't just answer

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and go silent. So if someone says, hey, how was

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your weekend, you can say it was good? How about you?

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That back and forth is key in small talk. Without

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it the conversation stuff. And look, you don't need to

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be a stand up comedian or super talkative. You just

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need a few friendly phrases and a willingness to engage.

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All right, let's wrap up today we looked at small

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talk and why it matters. And here's your takeaway. Small

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talk is casual, friendly conversation, not deep, not serious. Start

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with simple questions how was your weekend? Or what's up?

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Ask a follow up question to keep the conversation going.

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And remember in American culture, small talk is polite, even

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expected in many situations. So the next time you're in

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the elevator or waiting in line, or talking to a coworker,

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try a little small talk. It might feel strange at first,

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but the more you practice, the more natural it becomes.

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And if you really want to get some more practice

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using your English, you should join my podcast Learner's study group.

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There you can make new international friends, join us for

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live group lessons every week where we practice these podcast

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lessons together. Plus you get access to the pdf, transcript

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and audio download for every Happy English podcast in the

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past and in the future. And on top of that,

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each episode has exercises where you can practice this English

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point with speaking and writing checked by me. To learn more,

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just visit Myhappy English dot com and choose podcast lesson

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eight sixty one. Remember, learning another language is not easy,

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but it's not impossible, and I'm here to help you

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on your journey.

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Speaker 2: This podcast was brought to you by Happy English. Please

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visit Myhappy English dot com show your support for Happy

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English by leaving us a review. Get English, Get Happy,

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Happy English.